A Lament For Winter's Heart
by Having Done All
Summary: Winter's Heart has isolated himself from the world because of a painful past. Fluttershy's discovery of his home threatens that isolation. Can she show him that he doesn't need to be feared? Can he protect the Princesses from an old enemy that only he understands?
1. Chapter 1

_**A Lament For Winter's Heart**_

_Prologue:_

_Death's Moot_

The old caves were dark. The smell of mold and rot was everywhere. The small lanterns that were hung from the ceiling were not enough to banish the oppressive shadows. In fact, they only granted a pale, flickering, red illumination and their smoke hung in the air further confounding the senses. The steady, madding drip of water upon stone was the only indicator that time still held sway here. One could not help but feel that they were near the gate to Hell itself.

Now in this maze of caverns there is a door. A simple door. An imposing door. This portal of silver leads to the central chamber of this cave and is only missing the classic warning, "All hope abandon, ye who enter here" to complete it. It might as well have had it. The figures silently moving into the half-light of this half-remembered place would have ensured any intruders passage into the Inferno.

The figures were of all different species, from ponies to dogs and griffons, all wearing a cloak of gray trimmed in silver. Most were clothed in boiled leathers with various tools and small blades peeking out of pockets and sheaths. One, an aged Earth Pony with a heavily scarred foreleg, went unarmed and unarmored, yet was warily avoided. As they all entered the large circular chamber they moved quietly to it's edges slowly filling the room with creatures. All but the one. While the others stayed just outside the light at the rooms center, he moved to ascend the small hill at it's heart. He waited.

When finally he spoke, his voice was ragged and worn and tired. "Nightmare Moon has returned."

The exclamations of shock were uncharacteristic of this quiet place, and all the more jarring for it, but the stallion never flinched. He simply resumed speaking and the silence was immediate. "Princess Celestia has accepted her back by her side." This time the shock manifested in silence.

"First Father, bring out the Spear." The Earth Pony's order was obeyed by a Pegasus who carried the silver object reverently in his mouth. He halted before the mound, and the Earth Pony at its' summit moved toward its' base. When he stopped at the bottom he waited while regarding the weapon. Faster than he should have moved he ran his foreleg against the edge of the spear. His blood stained the blade as well as the ground. The dust greedily drank it in. Then he took the spear in his mouth and drove it into the ground.

"Mix my blood with Nightmare Moon's, and Princess Celestia's own blood, First Father. End their tyranny."

"It will be done, Grand-Father." The Pegasus solemnly responded. He then took the spear, pulled it from the earth, and slipped it in the crook of his wing. As he left the light his whispered words quickly sent others to complete their tasks, so that when he left the room several others were now beside him.

The Grand-Father watched them leave before addressing the others. "You are dismissed." The audience left as they came, silent as the grave. All save a Unicorn mare. She waited till the chamber was empty before speaking.

"You called the Moot for this one task?"

"It is not everyday we target so renowned a leader," a smirk briefly touching his lips.

She sighed, "This will not be easy, Grand-Father."

He didn't even look at her as he spoke, "I would be disappointed in their guards if it were."

"She is a beloved ruler, even among us."

"Which makes the need for her death all the more tragic."

"It will take a long time just to plan this," annoyance lacing the mare's tone.

The Grand-Father stood there a moment, considering her words. Then he laughed. "The First Father is far more patient than you, _Second Mother_." The emphasis clearly disgruntled her. "He is more than adequate to the task."

"But..."

The Grand-Father looked at her, weariness in his eyes. "But Nothing." He looked away again and walked toward the door. "I need you to locate and position Celestia's replacement. And you had better not fail. There is no point to any of this if a worse leader ascends the throne."

Seething, the Second Mother followed him out and extinguished the lights, leaving the cave in darkness once more.


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter 1:_

_Home Invasion (I'm Sorry)_

It was a dark and stormy night. Fluttershy was cowering under her bed hiding from this frightening cliche. It _had_ been a wonderful day. It _had_ been sunny and warm. It _had_ been productive. _Why did they have to schedule a major thunder storm tonight? Why any night for that matter?_ Fluttershy thought. Lightning lit the room in blinding flashes of blue and white, while thunder shook the window frames. To make matters worse there was also a storm over the nearby Everfree. Fluttershy momentarily wondered if Twilight was having any trouble in the Princesses' old castle. Then the thought was chased out of her head by the next round of lighting and thunder. She cuddled closer to her pet bunny, Angel.

Angel had been Fluttershy's only comfort as the storm built. He had allowed her to keep him close ever since the events at the old castle, but he had been getting restless. Right now though he was faithfully by her side, nestled into her fur, resting. That was some small comfort. She closed her eyes determined to relax and get some sleep.

Then another crash of thunder caused her to leap up and hit the bottom of her mattress. Shakily she reached for her pet and pulled him back to her. Except he felt too soft. Much too soft. She glanced to her side and found that she was holding a pillow. Fluttershy immediately and completely panicked.

"Ohnoohnoohonoohnoohnoohno! Angel. Angel-Bunny. Where are you?" she whispered frantically. Her initial sweep of the room was rapid yet thorough. She suppressed the urge to do another check of the bedroom and moved to search the rest of the house. Fluttershy stepped out of the room and moved rapidly down the stairs. The other animals were clearly agitated by the storm which seemed to be louder down in the main room. She quickly glanced around trying to ignore the pounding of the gale outside and find Angel. Then she froze. She could hear her breath quicken and her eyes widen, because she knew why it was so loud down here. The door was ajar. She stood there for a moment, rooted to the ground, unwilling to leave her home and enter the storm, yet equally unwilling to leave her pet alone in the midst of the same storm.

She then gathered her courage and charged out the door. The instant she was outside her worst fears were confirmed. Her bunny's prints were imprinted in the mud, and as she followed them she saw that they were going toward the wild and terrifying Everfree Forest.

* * *

During the day the Everfree was a frightening place for Fluttershy. The clouds moved and rained without any direction from the Pegasi. The plants and trees of the forest seeded and grew without aid from the Earth Ponies. The creatures here were dangerous and untamed. Now though the shapes were fleeting and ever-changing. New and horrible monsters sprouting from the shadows. The only thing preventing her from running back to her home was her fear for the safety of her pet.

Angel-Bunny's paw-prints were erratic and directionless making Fluttershy wonder why she hadn't found him yet. They weren't going down any path the two of them had traveled before, furthering the mystery of his intentions. _Why was he out here? Where was he going? _She wondered. Then the tracks changed, and her anxiety increased. There were clear drag marks and the prints went deeper into the ground. One of his legs had to be broken. Angel apparently didn't know which way to go for one of the impressions was very deep, indicating that he had stayed there, probably deciding which way to go before pulling himself away from home. She followed this for several feet before a shred of hope lightened her heart. Angel's tracks stopped in front of another pony's tracks.

That hope was quickly replaced by new fears. Such as who would want to take Angel-Bunny? And why? It clearly wasn't any of her friends, the hoof-prints were too large. And too deep. They were a couple inches deep. Fluttershy's mind whirled with possibilities, none of them good.

She followed these new set of tracks which had far more purpose than Angel's. No matter how diverting the path the pony was forced to take, he or she, whichever, always found the exact same line of the previous steps. These prints led her deeper into the forest than she had ever been before she lost them on a collection of flat stones and stopped to see how far the rocks went.

She found that she was in a clearing, but it was too dark to gauge it's size. It was so dark that the act of looking around disoriented Fluttershy almost causing her to panic again. Then she saw a pair of flickering, red lights. Intuiting that her, well, "quarry", was where the lights were she headed that way herself. Then lightning lit the sky and she glimpsed her destination.

Dark and fierce in the momentary light was a great Dragon, maw open wide to devour her. She screamed softly in fright and curled into a ball. Shivering she waited, hoping it didn't see her. And waited. After a while she cautiously opened one eye and peeked out from behind her mane. When the lighting brightened the night again she saw that the Dragon had not moved. She thought.

Fighting her fear and surrounded by the sounds of rain pelting the hard stone, Fluttershy crept forward. As she got closer to the lights the Dragon rose out of the murk and she saw that it was made of stone. It formed the arch to some huge door, a door that was flanked by two torches. The lights she saw earlier. Trembling she moved through the door and out of the rain, and started to call Angel's name.

The first room was dark and vast, extending well beyond the reach of the torchlight. Angel's whispered name echoed back from the shadows, taunting her. It was dry, if drafty, and Fluttershy, who was soaked to the bone, was grateful for that. She continued deeper into the, the castle?, fortress?, by following the lit torches going to her left. Advancing slowly and warily watching the shadows, she found herself experiencing deja vu from when she and her friends were in the Royal Pony Sister's old castle and she had lost Angel and Rarity. That had turned out ok, so she worked hard to convince herself that this would as well.

The light down the corridors was fairly consistent, broken only by gaps in the structure where rain and wind poured in. Even this place was proving to be frightening as the relative silence continued to further unnerve her. There was absolutely nopony around and she was beginning to wonder if she was in the right place when she heard a voice coming from down this hall. Her heart soared as she threw caution to the wind and called out her pet's name. It too echoed back, and the other voice fell silent. Running she rounded a corner and saw her bunny.

He was on a table, enveloped in a soft cloth with a wet towel on the floor nearby. His fur was standing on end making him look like an adorable, white puff ball. He was munching contentedly on a carrot, and waved to her when he saw her. She dashed to him and wrapped him in a bear hug, crushing him to her.

"Oh, Angel, Mommy was so worried for you. Why did you leave the house during the storm? You scared me half to death," she happily squealed. Angel struggled against her trying to break free. It was then that she noticed that his leg had a splint supporting it.

"Angel, what happened?!" she exclaimed. Angel looked at her, exasperated, clearly unable to communicate with her while being held.

"Well, you can tell me when we get home."

Just as she was about to go a flash of lighting tore the gloom apart, and there before her wrapped in the remaining darkness, was a massive creature. It stared at her with mismatched, baleful eyes. The red eye on it's left and the violet one on it's right clearly showed it's displeasure at her intrusion, and that was reinforced by the soft but distinct glow of the right. It did not want her here. She froze utterly terrified as the light vanished, leaving only those intense eye's watching her. Then she saw a flash of white as it opened it's mouth, and she drowned out the following thunder with her scream, then bolted out the door.

* * *

The Creature just stood there, stunned. He was expecting to have to threaten the young mare, or tell her to leave at least. He didn't expect her to just, well...react the way she did. He made his way to the entrance of his home and watched as she disappeared into the forest. For a moment he wondered if she would be able to find her way back to her home, wherever it was. Then he pushed her out of his mind and wandered back into his abode. He was alone again and that was all that mattered.


	3. Chapter 3

_Chapter 2:_

_Sniffles and Sneezes_

Rarity arrived at Fluttershy's just ahead of Rainbow Dash. The storm the night before had been nerve-wracking for her, and judging from how tired Rainbow looked, the Pegasus must have had a hard time containing it. Rarity of course had made certain that _her_ appearance was at it's best, but she wasn't here for some mare-talk. Both she, and presumably Rainbow, knew that their friend's temperament didn't, um, endure events such as last night with...grace, yes grace. To put it delicately.

After Rarity and Rainbow Dash had exchanged greetings Rarity knocked on the door. She waited. Then she knocked again. And she waited some more. Then just as Rarity lifted her hoof to knock again the door opened and...

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH," Rarity screamed. "Fluttershy, you poor thing. You look absolutely atrocious. What happened?"

The mare in question just stood there in wide eyed shock. Her mane and tail were matted and frizzy. Her yellow fur was jutting out everywhere. There were black bags under her bloodshot eyes. Mucus was dripping from her nose and in spite of the light sheen of sweat covering her she was shivering.

"Geez, Rare, are you trying to break the windows, or something." Rainbow complained.

"Oh, hello girls. What brings you here?" Fluttershy asked. Her voice was quieter than usual, and a little raw.

"Well, you, Shy. Rarity's right, you look kinda...off. Is it something you ate?" Dash replied.

Rarity just barely kept herself from face-hoofing. _The storm, Rainbow. The storm_.

"It's nothing. I just had to chase Angel in the rain." Fluttershy explained.

"WHAT!" both Rarity and Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

"Well what happened was..." Fluttershy started.

"No. No explanations," Rarity interrupted. "You are going straight to bed. You're sick and in no condition to work." Rarity then barged in to her friends home, followed closely by Rainbow Dash, fully intending to make Fluttershy rest.

"But I don't want to be an inconvenien...eeep," Rarity turned to see what had spooked Fluttershy. She saw her friend trembling under the couch.

"She saw her shadow." Dash answered flatly from beside Rarity.

Rarity looked around Fluttershy's home and was surprised to see that her house was in as bad a state as it's owner was. It was in complete disarray, and the animals were running amok. In no way remotely normal for her home.

"Rainbow, take care of the animals would you. I'll take Fluttershy to her room." Rarity proceeded to gently prod Fluttershy forward while Fluttershy's protests went unheeded..

_Yawn_ "Of course. This'll be," _yaaawwn_ "easy." Rainbow, unsurprisingly, asserted.

Rarity was understandably dubious, but ignored her doubts in favor of the more important task of shepherding Fluttershy to her bedroom. When they got there Fluttershy started sneezing, as gently as she could, and Rarity could see why. Her covers and mattress were soaking wet. Fluttershy must not have toweled off before going to bed. That was strange. The storm must have really spooked her. And now she was sick. Wonderful. The offending bunny was wrapped up on the floor nearby. She glared at his as he, at least, slept peacefully.

"Do you have a guest room, Dear?"

"Yes, it's right next door. Why?"

"Please go there and go to bed. I'll change out this bedding."

"Please don't trouble yourself, Rarity." _achoo _"I'm fine, really."

"You are not alright, Fluttershy. Now go to bed. I'll be in soon."

Rarity heard Fluttershy shuffle off, and Rarity started to change out the blankets and mattress. It didn't take long to replace the items with dryer ones, but it took longer than she had wanted. Her mood, already damaged by a lack of sleep, was dropping further. She grabbed some tissues and went to the next room.

Fluttershy was already sitting up in bed, waiting. "You don't have to do this, Rarity." _achoo_

"Nonsense, Dear. What are friends for. Now you just rest. We'll take care of everything."

"Well, if you think I should," Fluttershy finally, and meekly, capitulated. "Could you bring Angel to me. His leg is broken and I would like him nearby."

"Alright dear. I'll bring him to you."

Rarity went back to Fluttershy's room and retrieved the bunny. He barely stirred as she picked him up and she then noticed the splint on his leg. She stopped only to wrap him in a dry towel. She then paused as she examined the wet cloth that he used to be in. It was a magnificent wrap, as black as anything that she had seen. Bordered in deep crimson with strange letters of gold and silver were speckled across the cloth, and a symbol was in it's center lined in silver and white. A black sword crossing a coiled whip, both wreathed in golden flames. It was a blanket or coverlet of some sort, and Rarity couldn't help but wonder where it had come from. And as she looked she saw that even Angel's bandage wasn't gauze, but expensive linen. When she had returned with the rabbit she saw that Fluttershy was already sleeping. So Rarity laid Angel nearby and quietly crept out of the room.

She was pondering the strange covering as she walked down the stairs, but that thought was knocked clean out of her head as she was confronted by chaos. The main room was in an uproar. How she hadn't heard it upstairs amazed her. It was even worse than when she had helped Fluttershy to her room. Rarity looked for Rainbow Dash and found her where Dash was expected. Dash was sleeping on the couch, snoring.

Rarity humphed to herself, "I suppose that I will have to ask Applejack to help out here." And so Rarity went to gather her friends.

* * *

Fluttershy woke up truly screaming for the third night in a row. Bathed in a cold sweat and shivering from fear she looked toward her Angel-Bunny, and saw that through some miracle, he was still asleep. Ever since the night of the storm she had been having the exact same nightmare. It was durring a large storm, rain and lightning and thunder everywhere. Something huge, with fangs and horns and spikes and flaming eyes, would crawl toward her from the darkness. Shadows clung to it like skin while great talons gouged the hard earth propelling it forward. It wasn't any creature that she had ever seen before and it wanted to devour her, of that she was certain. It would be perfectly silent as it stalked her though the dark forest, and no matter how far she ran she couldn't escape it. She would tire fast and it would gain at far greater speed. The dream would always end the same. She would try and fly in a last ditch attempt to escape and then would find herself suddenly pinned to the ground unable to move. The last thing she would see was a pair of hungry eyes, one a red flame, the other a purple one, consuming her.

She sat there shivering, unwilling to chance entering the nightmare again by sleeping. Her friends had been beyond helpful in their care of her and her charges, the other animals, and she was deeply grateful. Even Twilight had pulled herself out of her search to help out. Appreciative as she was she wasn't about to go crazy just laying in bed all day. Though still sick she had recovered enough to take back some small roles. Her friends also knew about the nightmares. Flutttershy had woken up twice during day as they were visiting. This of course led to some awkward questions that Fluttershy had been unwilling to answer. She wasn't sure she liked keeping this secret, but she also didn't want to tell the others about a thing that clearly wanted to be left alone. At least she thought it did.

As she lay there wondering why she wouldn't confide in her friends about this fear, she looked again at her sleeping rabbit with growing envy. He wasn't suffering from sleepless nights. He wasn't having dreams about scary pony and bunny eating monsters. Here she was frightened over the dark and mysterious form of revenge that this creature would pursue against her for violating it's home, while the worst dream Angel would be troubled by was one where he would be safe from the rain, surrounded by a warm blanket, feasting on carrots, cared for and in no danger what-so-ever. Humph.

Fluttershy blinked at that last thought. _Cared for and in no danger? _She had been so busy being terrified by what she saw that she hadn't thought about Angel-Bunny's treatment at the hooves of that monster. _It cared for him. It found him, brought him out of the rain, fed him, and treated his injury. In fact, I heard something talking just before I found him. Could it have been comforting him? Can a monster care for and comfort anypony? _Fluttershy considered this for a moment before making a decision. She would go back there and thank it for rescuing her pet. And she would hate it.

Having resolved that issue she went back to sleep. She still had the same nightmare, but instead of waking up screaming she found that she was crying. The eyes in the dream had changed. They were no longer hungry. They were piercingly, and painfully, sad.


	4. Chapter 4

**_AN:__ For those of you following this story, nothing has changed save the name of the Romantic Interest in this story. I just remembered a phrase which I though would make a better name and used it. Sorry. Happy New Year! _**

_Chapter 3_

_Gift Horses_

"_Journal of Archeology 167 Entry 39-Two weeks after the Summer Solstice (ref. Journal of Astronomy 223 Entry 12)_

_The object (ref. Entry 35) remains unaffected by the alinement of the stars that most closely resemble the images on the object. (ref. Astronomy 223 Entries 4-26) This was the expected result. I have now confirmed that the representations on the object have no correlation with any known constellations in the local sky. This strengthens my suspicion that this object is not native to this area, possibly this World. Combined with rumors of a Mirror that leads to another Place convinces me that this object is the creation of the mysterious Humans. But of course that is speculation. The images may be the result of a strong imagination. It is also likely that it is not designed to react to the position of the appropriate star-formations. That it is merely a mundane object. Both would be a pity. It is also possible that the recent disappearance of the Image in the Moon (ref. Astronomy 222 Entry 67) may have affected the magical properties innate to the stars themselves. It seems that I will have to set aside my research of the object since I do not possess the necessary equipment or information to pursue it."_

_Another mystery reaches the limits of my knowledge far too soon, _The stallion thought to himself as he lay the quill down and sealed the book up. He placed it on the shelf beside it's siblings and moved back to the table on which sat the strange subject of his musings. He stared at the thin, rectangular object without really seeing it, trying hard to manage his disappointment. One would assume he would be better at this by now. After all he never really left the castle, and he ensured that no one came to visit, so his research was severely hampered. Too many questions, not enough answers, lots of disappointment.

He put the device/object/thing away in a safe place and tidied up the room a-bit before making his way downstairs to satisfy his hunger. He took quick stock of his fare while he made something simple to eat. He noted that he was very low on food. _Sigh. Seems I will have to do some foraging today. It is not like I had any important reading to do before the stars came up,_ he thought sarcastically to himself.

The kitchen was the only room outside the central tower where he lived that he maintained, save the entrance hall. It was also the simplest room. Dark gray stone walls, windows, shelves, cabinets, ovens, and tables ensured the room was functional and that was it. Devoid of the statues and tapestries of the rest of the castle it was also the least distracting room. A great place to just sit and think. And eat.

As he ate he watched the clouds move lazily across the sky, planing where to start searching for food. He would have to avoid the one route for now so as to avoid that mare and her pet. Just in case. His thoughts wandered to the butter-yellow mare. She was so easily frightened, yet she had braved that storm just to find her rabbit. She loved it very much, and it loved her as well. Disappointment welled up inside of him again. When he had found the bunny, he had hoped to have found an animal companion to spend the lonely hours with. Alas, It was not to be. What was odd was that it had been a long time since he had thought of his self-imposed exile as lonely. Perhaps he could train a timber-wolf as a pet if it was young enough.

He pushed these thoughts aside as he collected the saddlebags and tools necessary for gathering food. He also checked the observation room on the top floor of his tower, to ensure that it was ready for use the moment he got back. It was going to be a long day.

After assuring himself of the state his apartments he went to the entrance hall he and was shocked to find the same mare from several days earlier, standing at the central monument. A white hot flash of anger burned through him, and it took at least a dozen heartbeats to regain calm. He moved silently but swiftly, using the shadows to conceal himself from her view. He watched as she stared at the great statue before her. He was about to tell her in his most intimidating voice to leave and never return when she did something strange. She placed the overstuffed saddlebag she was wearing on the ground in front of the statue. Then a small, quiet, tremulous voice fluttered around the ancient room, and it took him a few moments to realize that it was coming from her. It had been a long time since any voice, even his own, had been heard in this old place.

"I'm...I'm sorry to both...bother you, but...but I wanted to...to thank yo...you for taking care of my bunny, Angel. So I brought you some food. If...if you want it that is."

And he just stood there, stunned for the second time by this mare. "And what makes you think that I want your kindness?" He replied harshly unsure of why she felt obliged to do this.

It was obvious that she had no idea where his voice had come from, and that was fine by him. He watched and waited as she searched in vain for him, gave up and then continued, shakier than before. "I just thought that you might be hungry. It doesn't look like it is easy trying to get food here, especially for something of your size." Fortunately It was far easier than she knew. He thought for a moment and it occurred to him that she had an idea of his size, but no idea what he was. He could use that.

After a moment he replied, "So it is alright to break into somepony else's home where your from?"

She blushed as she looked down at her hooves and fidgeted. "I knocked but nopony answered. I'm sorry."

He was about to retort when he heard a unusual noise. It sounded like a sneeze, but it was so quiet that he couldn't be sure. Then it happened again, and the way she moved, and even trembled, confirmed it. _Why would she come here when she is sick? What does she gain? _He studied her carefully for a moment. She was a little disheveled, and it was a good bet that she was too weak to have carried that food. He was about to ask about this when he was again interrupted.

"I have a friend who likes to enter my home without knocking. I don't like it, but I guess I just got used to it. I didn't think to ask if a...well, Monster would want me barging into his home." She meekly replied. Mabye. He barely heard anything past "Monster". It was as if a thousand voices spoke that word all at once, taunting him.

Instantly a black rage shot through him drowning out everything else. His body quaked with the effort of trying to restrain himself from doing anything rash. It was decided. She was not staying. His voice was icy sharp in its' calm.

"Never call me, 'Monster'," he growled. "Call me Usurper, call me Tyrant, call me Murderer. But never call me 'Monster'. Now. Leave." What she saw he had no idea, but it clearly scared her as she backed away wide eyed, turned around, and ran. Again.

He moved to the saddlebag still on the floor, his anger gone as swiftly as it had come. He had just chased out somepony who had only wanted to thank him. That was it. She was even sick and she had still come here. More pointless pain. More hurt. She didn't even know him and already he had hurt her. He hated himself.

He looked up into the eyes of the Earth Pony mare who was immortalized in stone. Her gaze seemed hurt and angry. _So you judge me as harshly as I judge myself. _He looked back at the bag of food and brooded.

* * *

Fluttershy had woken up that morning feeling somewhat better. She had been able to wipe away her tears before any of her friends would show up. Rarity and Applejack most commonly showed up in the morning. Rarity would take care of her while Applejack would take care of the animals. AJ was pretty good with them and Fluttershy was grateful for the break. This morning they didn't disappoint. Fluttershy met them at the door and let them in. She helped Rarity change out the bedding in her room, and then she supervised the work with the critters. It didn't take long, and Rarity and AJ were saying their goodbyes.

Fluttershy checked on Angel-Bunny, who was getting restless lying about, and made sure he would be okay while she was gone. She told him she would be gone for a little while, but would be back real soon.

She went downstairs to prepare some food as an apology for Angel and herself, and as a thank you. She wondered what shadowy monsters ate, and remembered that he was very large. She also remembered the hoof-prints that she had seen and decided that it would enjoy pony food.. If it didn't enjoy ponies instead. She ignored that thought and increased the amount of food that she was preparing.

It took most of the morning, which worried her since Rainbow Dash was prone to barge in anytime she wanted, But there were no interruptions. So she carefully packed her saddlebag and started out to the forest. It wasn't long before her energy was drained, and she was made to wonder at the wisdom of this move. With each step she contemplated going back, until she felt her hooves hit stone. She looked up and saw a very familiar stone Dragon.

Fluttershy stopped and looked around, taking in her surroundings. She was on a bridge made of dark stone. It had arches on both ends depicting a Unicorn battling a Griffon. Or it might have. There was barely enough remaining to call it a bridge, and it was a miracle that she hadn't fallen off that first night. It crossed a ravine with a river at it's bottom, splitting off and going around the clearing to meet up again on the other side. This was the only bridge across. The castle she was approaching stood at the crest of a small hill. Made of the same stone as the bridge it was square and angular, with five square towers. It was covered in thin, tall windows with fierce creatures carved into the walls, looking as if they guarded this silent structure. It was worn and weathered, but still highly intact. She swallowed her intimidation before it choked her.

The torches in the sconces where unlit, but the sun was more than enough to illuminate the huge door in front of her. It looked like an open mouth complete with fangs, which made sense since this was where the Dragon's head ended. Just over the wood of the ornate door where the words. "_Lasciate ogni speranza, voi ch'entrate" She had no idea what that meant, but she didn't like it._

_She knocked on the door and hoped for a quick response. It didn't come. She tried again, and waited. And again and waited. And again and waited. Fearing that she couldn't leave the food outside and knowing that she couldn't lug it back home, she pushed at the door. It slowly, but smoothy opened. Somepony took care of the door, apparently, so her hope and fear were both renewed._

_ A single stained glass window was at the first chamber's opposite end haloing a fair portion of it in a beautiful blue-white glow. All around the room, the torches, all dark, were stylized to look like they were lights being generated by the horns of female Alicorns etched into the wall. Armored Alicorns, male, were carved into the sides of large rectangles of stone with spears pointed upwards. They looked like they were bearing a figure carved into the top of each of the rectangles. The middle of the room was lined with them making a wide aisle down the middle. Each figure held a dagger, and it took her a moment to realize that they were all different. Some were stallions, others mares. Some were Earth Pony's, or Unicorns, or Pegasi. A couple were even Griffons, and one a Diamond Dog. In all there were twelve, complete with a name on the side facing the aisle._

_There were two tapestries on the wall opposite each other. The light prevented her from seeing the full decoration on the cloths. On the left She could see a strange Alicorn with what could have been metal wings and a metal horn, each fashioned like swords. A dark aura emanated from him. He was sitting in snow with his head bowed, surrounded by the corpses of other Alicorns and weeping. On the other side, a cloaked figure with a bright halo, stabbed a spear into the body of a Pegasus, eyes red and engulfed in a black nimbus. Just after that were twelve figures also surrounded by halos. She briefly wondered what on the hidden parts of those fabrics. _

_The window was very simple compared to the rest of the chamber. Bordered in silver leaves it showed an Earth Pony mare, light red with a white mane, and enveloped in a white light ascending into a blue sky. That was it. The window was beautiful in it's simplicity._

_Fluttershy finally moved to the large statue that dominated the room. It was an Earth Pony mare standing above a budding plant, watching it, and gently prodding the ground around it with her hoof. A simple plaque at the base of the statue read, "For Cherry Blossom. All failed you. Forgive us."_

_The entire room was tragic and sacred at the same time, and she found herself staring at the mare wondering what she was like, and how she had died. Then she remembered why she was there and placed the bags with the food at the foot of the statue._

_It wasn't long till she was chased out of the Monster's, no, Thing's home. It had been nearly unbearable being in there with him. The implication of his Presence was overwhelming. The possibility that it had been watching her, disturbing. It had been hard, but she had manged to hold a, um not conversation per say , but a chat with the deep, raspy voice originating from the shadows. Then she had to have ruined it by offending him. What creature would want to be called a monster. What had come out of the darkness after looked so much like her dream that she couldn't keep from running. Not that it wanted her there anyway. _

_As Fluttershy ran back to her home she started to cry. Coupled with her weakened condition she tripped several times. It was only when she was out of the forest that she slowed down and trotted the rest of the way home, tearfully recalling her failure. Had anypony ever outright rejected her before? Was she really that pathetic that she couldn't get a simple thank you correct? It was flight school all over again, and yet different._

_When she got inside she cleaned herself up, made herself something to eat, and went straight to bed. She saw that Angel's leg was bothering him again, and she tried to sooth it somewhat before trying to sleep. She just wished she could do more to take away the pain. ____Do I mean Angel's pain, His pain, or my pain?_

_When Fluttershy slept that night the dream changed again. The dreadful eyes at the end of the dream were weeping streams of fire, and instead of burning her they burned the Creature. _


End file.
